This invention relates to a gas permeable, filled pore membrane and to the separation of polar gases such as carbon dioxide and non-polar gases, such as hydrocarbons, using such membranes.
Various supported or immobilized liquid membranes are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,335,545, 3,396,510, 3,819,806, 4,117,079, 4,115,514 and 3,447,286. All of these operate chemically through ionic acid-base equilibriums in which water is an essential component of the net reaction. In the case of U.S. Pat. No. 4,117,079, a hydrophilic material which is impregnated with an aqueous carbon dioxide hydration catalyst is sandwiched between two layers of a hydrophobic material. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,447,286 a silicone envelope is provided to avoid loss of water.